Purely Joyful Movie!

Just perfect...

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Pros= The European version of the film is great. The acting is acceptable. Cons= Orson Welles playing a Moor. The characters are uninteresting.

No, I'm not trolling. I like a lot of Shakespeare's plays so I thought I'd try Othello. I hope it's the last time I see any version of probably the most implausible movie I've ever seen. In case you missed it: * Someone suggests to Othello, a newly married man who's infatuated with his wife, that she's cheating on him. Instead of telling him he's out of line, Othello believes him. * He goes on a military campaign and takes with him not just his wife, but also her maid. * He tramples on a handkerchief that he later says is of utmost sentimental value to him. * Despite being in charge of the Venetian army, he has hours every day to talk one-on-one, to one of his advisers, about his personal life. * Iago and Cassio have a conversation about Bianca in which Cassio doesn't once mention Bianca's name. * Desdemona mentions Cassio all the time. If she was having an affair with him, wouldn't she try to make it a bit less obvious? * Roderigo tells Iago that he doesn't trust him, and not thirty seconds later agrees when Iago suggests he kill Cassio. * Cassio, dying, says that he had two killers, but nobody bothers to look for the second one. * Othello overhears a conversation between Emilia and Desdemona which makes it clear that Desdemona has done nothing wrong, but still thinks she's being unfaithful to him. * Despite the fact that there's precisely, exactly, zero chemistry between Cassio and Desdemona when they're together, and the fact that nobody but Iago is suspicious, and that Cassio is already seeing someone else, and that Othello raises his suspicions with not a single other person, and the overheard conversation, he still thinks she's unfaithful. * He locks himself in their bedroom, knowing that Emilia has seen him, before he kills her, making him the only possible murderer. * When Emilia points out that Desdemona is (was) innocent, Othello, having been sure enough of her guilt for days and days, and sure enough to kill her only ten minutes earlier, suddenly decides she was innocent. OK, so I get that people don't always act rationally when love is involved, but seriously, that doesn't even explain even half of the above. I did battle my way to the end of it, but honestly, that's an hour and a half of my life that I'll never get back.

This may actually be one of the worst productions of Othello I have ever seen. Cuts are made left and right to the original script to the point where not only is Iago's entire motive for his actions lost, but the character of Desdemona may as well have been played by an inflatable sex doll for all the impact she has on the production. I don't know how much of this to blame on Welles (I couldn't help but notice all of HIS monologues were pretty much intact, while poor, honest Iago's either lie on the cutting room floor or were never filmed to begin with), or the editor of the film. Whichever is responsible should have been ashamed of themselves for turning out this slap in the face to Shakespeare.

What an incredible movie! There have been many brilliant directors -- Coppola, Huston, Pekinpah, Spielberg, to mention but a few -- but there is only one Orson Welles. In Othello, the Great Master towers above all others in an impressive tour-de-force. This sparkling production combines the greatest genius of literature and the greatest genius of film. The result... Shakespearean film noir. Amazing cinematography and editing that will take your breath away. One brilliantly composed shot after another. Tremendous acting and direction. Atmospheric drama so visceral and intense it creates the "Wow!" effect. Welles' artistry is pure genius and reminiscent of Michelangelo. A truly great masterpiece.